Surgical gown



July 12, 1966 D. TAMES 3,

SURGICAL GOWN Filed Aug. 24, 1964, 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

Daniel Tames ATTORNEY D. TAMES SURGICAL GOWN July 12, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 24. 1964 INVENTOR.

D a n i e I Tames ATTORNEY D. TAMES SURGICAL GOWN July 12, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 24. 1964 INVENTOR. Daniel Tames y ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,259,913 SURGICAL GOWN Daniel Tames, 3500 N. Shore Drive, Chicago, Ill. Filed Aug. 24, 1964, Ser. No. 391,493 7 Claims. (Cl. 2114) The present invention relates to a surgical gown and more particularly to a surgical gown adapted to absorb perspiration in the neck area.

It is to be expected that under the combined effects of hot lights and heightened tensions there is a natural tendency for a surgeon to perspire. Commonly, such perspiration occurs around the neck and, left unchecked, drips downward onto the surrounding skin areas, and thus contaminates the operating gown when the perspiration wets through the gown. It is a routine practice in operating rooms for the surgeon to stop an operation intermittently in order to have his neck wiped of perspiration by a nurse. These interruptions are annoying and most unwelcome.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a surgical gown which will overcome the foregoing dilficulty.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a surgical gown which will absorb neck perspiration and also have the advantage of reversibility.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a surgical gown which will be simple to put on and extremely comfortable to wear.

Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a back View of a surgical gown according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a back view of the neck area of the garment shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 3-3 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an alternate construction;

FIG. 5 is a back View of the neck area-of a surgical gown according to another embodiment in which absorbent material is applied to both sides of the gown to permit reversibility;

FIG. 6 is a front view of the surgical gown before it is wrapped around and secured;

FIG. 7 is a front view of the surgical gown after it has been wrapped around and secured;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 8-8 in FIG. 6 and showing the manner in which the cuff is secured to the sleeve;

FIG. 9 is a back view of the gown of FIGS. 6 and 7 in the first stages of being folded;

FIG. 10 is a top view of the gown of FIG. 9 when folded in half; and

FIG. 11 is a top view of the completely folded gown.

Referring now to the drawings, the surgical gown comprises a fabric coat 10 having full-length sleeves 11. The sleeves terminate in knitted cuffs 12. A back opening extends the full length of the coat and divides the back into a first back section 13 and a second back section 14. The side edge of each back section 13 and 14 is turned back to form a hem 16. Secured to the edge of the first back section 13 at the waistline is a first fastener 18 which is adapted to be attached to a mating fastener 20 secured to the inside of the second back section. Stitched around the waist of the gown is a waistband 22 of a finished width of approximately one inch made of the same material as the coat. The waistband 22 extends out from the second back section 14 to form a tape 24 which carries a fastening member 26. At the top edge of the gown there are a plurality of mating snaps 28 at each side of the back opening which may be selectively engaged for the best fit according to size.

A neck yoke 30 of absorbent material is secured to the inside surface of the coat. The neck yoke 30 is cut on the bias and conforms with the arcuate shape of the top edge of the gown. The upper edge 32 and the lower edge 34 of the yoke are turned under and stitched to the coat with the upper edge 32 approximately coinciding with the top edge of the gown. Each end edge 36 of the yoke 30 is secured within the side edge hem 16. It is preferable to make the neck yoke 30 of two elongated strips of material stitched together at a central seam 38,

and extending to a length substantially to cover the entire neck area of the coat. A width of about two and onehalf inches has been found to give satisfactory results. To finish the top edge of the gown there is a binding tape 40 which extends over both surfaces and is stitched in place.

The neck yoke 30 may be formed of a single layer of absorbent material as shown in FIG. 3. For superior absorbency it may be formed of two layers 42 and 44 which are stitched to the coat 46 and finished off with tape 48.

Having the absorbent material in immediate contact with the surgeons neck affords the means by which any perspiration in this area may be absorbed. This prevents perspiration drops from dripping down from the neck, which is a major source of discomfort. Furthermore, absorbency is accomplished without detracting from the smoothness of the garment. In fact, birdseye, the absorbent material which is most appropriately used, is very soft and actually adds to the comfort of the garment. In addition, the garment retains its ability to be sterilized which, of course, is absolutely necessary.

In another embodiment of the invention, shown in FIG. 5, the absorbent material is applied to both sides of the surgeons gown. This construction permits the use of the gown with either side outermost to impart reversibility to the garment. Accordingly, if side 50 is worn to the outside, neck yoke 52 acts to absorb the perspiration. If, however, side 54 is worn to the outside, neck yoke 56 lies next to the neck. In order to permit the neck opening to be closed with either surface outermost, a plurality of mating fasteners 58 are provided along the neck edge to each side of the opening and are alternately faced to each surface of the coat. There fore, the edges of the back opening may be overlapped and selectively fastened according to size with either surface worn outermost.

To prevent the slightest chance of irritation from the fastening members-aflap -60 of material is secured to the top edge only of the coat to one side of the back opening. In this way, the flap 60 is hingeably attached to permit its use on either surface of the gown when being utilized as the inner surface. The flap 60 may be of triangular configuration as shown in the drawing.

The reversibility of the gown is permitted by the use of two neck yokes, dual sets of fastening members, and is further provided for in the sleeve construction. FIGS. 6 and 8 illustrate the manner in which a knitted cuff 62 is attached to the full-length fabric sleeve 64. In the example shown both the cuff 62-and the sleeve 64 are made of two plies of material which are stitched together to form a hem 66. The free edges 68 of the hem 66 are stitched down to the sleeve 64. This double stitching gives a finished appearance on both sides of the gown for reversibility. Important, too, the double stitching improves the comfort of the coat by eliminating the rough edges which a single-stitched hem produces.

After use, the surgical gown is laundered. Following this, the gown is folded. It is laid down on its front face and the first back section 70 is placed smoothly over the rest of the gown. The second back section 72 is the larger section and it is folded over on itself and a fastener 74 on tape 76 is attached to the front mating fastener 78 at the front of the gown. The gown is then folded in half lengthwise with the sleeves placed toward the inside, as shown in FIG. 10. To complete the folding, the gown is folded in half crosswise two times. The folded gown is now a neat package ready for placement in an autoclave for sterilizing. When the sterilized gown is needed it is merely picked up by the neck and it will unfold for use.

When the gown is first put on it is semi-folded with the fastener 74 on the tape 76 still attached to the front mating fastener 78 located on waistband 80 toward the front of the coat on the same side as the tape 76. After pulling the coat over the arms and body, a nurse attaches the neck fasteners 58 at a comfortable position andthe inner waist fasteners 82 and 84. She then detaches the tape 76 from the front mating fastener 78, draws this back section 72 over the other back section 70 and secures a second tape fastener 90 to a second mating fastener 92 located on the waistband 80 toward the front of the coat on the side opposite to that carrying the tape 76.

It may be seen, then, that the present invention provides a surgical gown which incorporates absorbent material in the neck region in order to absorb perspiration. Furthermore, the invention can be used in a gown which is designed for reversibility. The advantages of reversibility is most clearly illustrated when it is considered how many precious manhours are saved by eliminating the timeconsuming step of returning a gown to a right side after it has been inverted during its removal. With a reversible surgical gowneach side is the right side and the gown can be left at whichever side is outermost.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles.

What is claimed is:

1. A surgical gown having a neck band and comprising a fabric coat of a size and shape completely to surround the body of the wearer, said coat having a back opening extending the full length of said coat, a plurality of spaced mating fasteners along the neck edge of said coat on each side of said back opening whereby the edges of said back opening may be overlapped and selectively fastened according to size, sleeves secured to said gown and a neck yoke of absorbent material secured below and adjacent said neck band to the inside surface of said coat, said neck yoke being made of an elongated strip of a length substantially to cover the entire neck area of the coat, whereby perspiration in the neck area may be readily absorbed.

2. A surgical gown comprising a fabric coathaving a hem at each side edge of a back opening extending the full length of said coat and a bias-cut neck yoke having its upper and lower edges turned under and stitched to the inside surface of said coat,'each end edge of said yoke being secured within said side edge hem, said neck yoke being made of an elongated strip of absorbent material approximately two and one-half inches in width and of a length substantially to cover the entire neck area of the coat whereby perspiration in said neck area may be readily absorbed.

3. A reversible surgical gown comprising a coat having a back opening extending the full length of said coat, a plurality of mating fasteners along the neck edge of said coat on each side of said back opening and alternately facing each surface of said coat whereby the edges, of said back opening may be overlapped and selectively fastened according to size with either surface worn outermost, and a flap of material secured to the top edge only of the coat to one side of the back opening whereby the flap is hingeably attached thereto to permit its use on either surface of the coat when being utilized as the inner surface thereby to protect the wearer from irritation from the fasteners.

4. A surgical gown comprising a coat having a back opening extending the full length of said coat, said back opening dividing the back of the coat into a first back line, a mating fastener secured to the inside of the second backsection and adapted for attachment to said first fastener, a tape extending out from the waistline at the second back section and carrying a tape fastener, a first mating fastener secured to the waistline of the coat whereby the second back section may be drawn over to overlap the first section and the tape fastener attached thereto, and a second tape mating fastener at generally the front waistline of the coat to which the tape'fastener may be attached for folding.

5. A reversible surgical gown having a neck band and comprising a fabric coat of a size and shape completely to surround the body of the wearer, said coat having a back opening extending the full length of said coat, a plu-. rality of spaced mating fasteners along the neck edge of said coat on each side of said back opening whereby the edges of said back opening may be overlapped and selectively fastened according to size, sleeves secured to said gown and a neck yoke of absorbent material secured below and adjacent said neck band to each surface of said coat said neck yoke being made of an elongated strip of a length substantially to cover the entire neck area of the coat whereby perspiration in the neck area may be readily absorbed when worn on either side.

6. A reversible surgical gown comprising a fabric coat having a back opening extending the full length of said coat, a neck yoke secured to each surface of said coat, said neck yoke being made of an elongated strip of absorbent material of a length substantially to cover the entire neck area of the coat whereby perspiration in the neck area may be readily absorbed when worn on either side, said coat having full-length sleeves and a knitted cuff attached to each of said sleeves, said sleeve and cuff being stitched together to form a hem, the free edges of said hem being stitched down to give a finished appearance on both sides of the gown to permit reversibility and to improve comfort by eliminating rough edges.

7. A surgical gown as in claim 4 in which said coat has an inner and an outer finished face and in which each of said fasteners are duplicated on the inner and the outer face of the coat to permit complete reversibility of the gown.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 338,024 3/ 1886 Bilbrough 21 13 1,119,617 12/1914 Livingston 2122 1,498,489 6/ 1924 Steinmetz 2115 1,758,766 5/1930 Staples 2127 2,123,436 7/ 1938 Richmond 250 2,375,562 5/ 1945 Kaufmann 293 3,011,172 12/ 1961 Tames 251 3,129,432 4/ 1964 Belkin 2114 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

R. I. SCANLAN, Assistant Examiner, 

1. A SURGICAL GOWN HAVING A NECK BAND AND COMPRISING A FABRIC COAT OF A SIZE AND SHAPE COMPLETELY TO SURROUND THE BODY OF THE WEARER, SAID COAT HAVING A BACK OPENING EXTENDING THE FULL LENGTH OF SAID COAT, A PLURALITY OF SPACED MATING FASTENERS ALONG THE NECK EDGE OF SAID COAT ON EACH SIDE OF SAID BACK OPENING WHEREBY THE EDGE OF SAID BACK OPENING MAY BE OVERLAPPED AND SELECTIVELY FASTENED ACCORDING TO SIZE, SLEEVE SECURED TO SAID GOWN AND A NECK YOKE OF ABSORBENT MATERIAL SECURED BELOW AND ADJACENT SAID NECK BAND TO THE INSIDE SURFACE OF SAID COAT, SAID NECK YOKE BEING MADE OF AN ELONGATED STRIP OF A LENGTH SUBSTANTIALLY TO COVER THE ENTIRE NECK AREA OF THE COAT, WHEREBY PERSPIRATION IN THE NECK AREA MAY BE READILY ABSORBED. 